Appearances:

Overview

Until recently, Rendir Throam was the counterpart of Elm Caden, an Imperial Shard in the service of Empress Ecoria. Throam's role is seen by many as being not much beyond that of a bodyguard and enforcer, but the reality is that he gets to travel the galaxy and do things others could never hope to.

Throam was born and raised on Earth, in the towering City of Peru, to his mothers Lamis and Peshal. There he was given an upbringing which many would rightly envy.

He was old enough to understand the Perseus conflict when it started, and his heroes and heroines were officers serving on the front lines. His parents were not thrilled with his military obsession but were committed to letting him make his own choices.

Throam was always sporty as a child, and was a maulball player for much of his school and college life. He was obsessed with the Perseus conflict and joined the Cadet Association at his school, where he learned to shoot. He maintained his shooting practice throughout his academic life and was at champion level wherever he went.

Throam has a son he has not seen since the boy was a Solar old.

Personality

Throam is reliable, honest, and dependable. He lives in the real world for the most part, although his retirement plan is entirely unrealistic given his lack of proper preparation.

Slow to anger but formidable in conflict, his military personality is sharply contrasted against his social reluctance. Despite loving his job, he has little sense of career preservation when it comes to challenging senior officers.

Throam's morals mostly come from two sources: his mothers, and his military duties. He is patient, non-judgemental, taciturn, stoic, and uncritical, and tries hard not to upset others unless they really deserve it. He will speak his mind if he thinks something is not right. His military background ensures that he values loyalty, dedication, strength of conviction, and honourable conduct.

Self-expression is not Throam's strong suit, and although he enjoys reading he does not see himself as anything approaching an intellectual. He is not given to pretence and does not aspire to be seen as a philosopher. Most of his views are formulated and shared as and when they become relevant.

Throam has a cynical attitude towards politics and views all orders from above with suspicion. He does not believe for one moment that the Home Council have the best interests of the military in mind. He does not spend a lot of time thinking about the plights or complaints of civilians, unless prompted by someone close to him.

Adversity

Someone as large and capable as Rendir Throam can still be knocked around emotionally, if not physically. Even growing up as he did in the Imperial Combine, as a child he faced occasional hostility and mockery from some quarters due to the fact that he had two mothers. As is so common in the Empire the bulk of this came from children who had not yet had their innate prejudices educated out of them.

When Throam separated from Euryce Eilentes he was reasonably well shielded from too much emotional upset — she had assured him he was leaving to do what he had always wanted to do, and once he had actually left he was kept far too busy training for his new role to think of anything else.

​When he met Ephisia Pardé, however, things were somewhat different. Over the course of their relationship she went from being a wonderful catch — someone so wonderful that he had been happy to conceive a child with her within a very short time — to the most controlling and irritating person he had ever met. That relationship ended when Pardé left, taking their son Gendin with her, while Throam was away on a training exercise. She left a half-page note behind.

Throam's presumed death on Meccrace Prime, and the subsequent events, will doubtless have had consequences which are yet to be recognised.

Education

Throam is not stupid by any means, but he was never particularly academic and has always had a realistic view of his own capability. Even at a young age he knew he was not smart enough to work for Eyes and Ears, or to follow the Shard pathway.

Until the age of fifteen Solars he attended the Level Two-Thirty School in the City of Peru on Earth, before shipping out to the Imperial War College on Kelvestyr. There he took the counterpart pathway, and successfully graduated to the Counterpart Academy at the age of twenty-one.

Military Service

Throam was specifically trained to fill a counterpart role, but none were available when he completed his training. He therefore defaulted to an active MAGA unit and quickly rose through the ranks. During that time he spent a year aboard the ICS Embolden, and it was while there that he cultivated his passionate relationship with Euryce Eilentes.

When Maber Castigon was sent to prison, Throam was chosen as his replacement and became Elm Caden's counterpart. He was promoted to the rank of MAGA captain a few months after the incident at Fort Tochi, during which his actions saved many lives.

Throam's current role is simple: keep Caden alive, and allow him to complete his objectives without outside interference.

Throam and Caden work very well together. They have an equitable relationship despite their prescribed stations. Caden regularly seeks Throam's opinion on matters which he ought to keep to himself, indicating the level of trust and respect between them.

Notable Events

3714: First experience of homophobic bullying in relation to his two mothers (→​LOTD flashback).